MONDAY UPDATE: Monticello Fire has burned 6,490 acres west of Winters

Crews battling a wildfire burning in a rugged patch of far Northern California were facing another day of triple-digit temperatures and gusty winds Monday as officials warned that the flames could again threaten homes. It was at nearly 6,500 acres as of Monday morning.

Crews were able to hold the line on the Monticello Fire in the steep mountains near Lake Berryessa in Yolo County overnight and increase containment by 5 percent to 35 percent. But officials were expecting another dry, 100-degree-plus day and warned that there was the possibility homes could be threatened again as the fire moved north.

"It's going to be even hotter today and even dryer weather throughout the area," state fire spokesman Daniel Berlant said.

A firefighter was hospitalized after a bulldozer he was operating rolled over. Berlant said he suffered minor injuries.

Two other firefighters have suffered minor injuries - one a bee sting and the other heat exhaustion, Berlant said.

The fire has burned about 10 square miles. It began on Friday and was stoked by gusty winds and thick, brittle brush that has not burned for at least two decades and is extremely dry because of California's drought.

Shifting winds had threatened to send the flames back in the direction of a hillside neighborhood that firefighters saved Saturday. The threat to the roughly 40 homes in Golden Bear Estates dissipated late Sunday, leading authorities to lift evacuation orders for those who live in the neighborhood. Jodi Westropp, 43, told the San Francisco Chronicle that she was thankful her neighborhood was spared but understood it may not be over. "It's a risk here," she said. "It's just so dry."

Firefighters battling another wildfire northwest of Lake Berryessa were sent to attack the Monticello Fire. That blaze was 85 percent contained after burning nearly 7 square miles and destroying two homes. Four firefighters suffered minor injuries.

According to Cal Fire, the Monticello Fire has been burning since just after 9:30 p.m. Friday. As of 6:30 a.m. Monday, it was reported to be 35 percent contained. The fire is at the southeast shore of Lake Berryessa near the Monticello Dam.

The fire had exploded in size throughout on Sunday, starting around 1,500 acres early Saturday afternoon, up to 3,000 acres by 3 p.m. and then 5,000 acres at 5 p.m. By late Sunday night it was at 6,488 acres. More than 1,000 firefighters were working to bring it under control.

Forty structures at the Golden Bear Estates were threatened. The estates and Canyon Creek Resort Campground were evacuated with an evacuation shelter set up at the Winters Community Center. The evacuation order was lifted Sunday night by the Yolo County Sheriff's Department for residents on Hwy. 128 from County Road 87 to Positas Road. Campgrounds along Hwy. 128 remain closed, however.

The blaze has closed Highway 128 west of Winters at Pleasant Valley Road near Lake Berryessa.

Three people had been hurt, no structures had burned, and the fast-moving blaze, dubbed the Monticello Fire, was 15 percent contained, Cal Fire officials said Sunday.

Amy Head, a public information officer with the state fire agency, said no cause had been determined yet, although it has been declared "suspicious."

"We're not ruling anything out," she said.

Head declined to predict the time of full containment, adding, "It's really difficult to tell. It depends on how the day and night goes, how the weather plays out."

On Sunday more than 1,000 firefighters battled the flames, supported by crews driving 20 fire engines, two water tankers and six bulldozers, Head noted.

Additionally, fire crews from surrounding areas — and "resources and personnel" from the Office of Emergency Services — had been dispatched to the scene, she said.

Fire crews were being stationed at the Yolo County Fairgrounds over the weekend. Some teams were headed out to the fire on Monday morning.

Winds had not been a factor in the fire's spread, with southwesterly breezes reported to be 5 mph at the dam and wind speeds between 15 and 20 mph at the ridge tops. Winds have been spreading the smoke all over the Sacramento Valley, however.

"It's one of the key things we're keeping an eye on," said Head. "The prevailing winds often come from the west in the afternoon."

The fire has consumed areas she described as "grassy oak woodlands, with pine trees higher up."

Meanwhile, Cal Fire reported that the nearby Butts Fire on Saturday was 70 percent contained and still held to a little more than 4,000 acres.

That fire, which began Tuesday, has destroyed two homes and seven outbuildings in northern Napa and southern Lake counties. More than 1,600 firefighters have battled that blaze.